Living The Worthy Life: A New Look At Bishop Sheen´s Influence In The 1950s
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Are we worried about the proper things? Think about it. We have the highest inflation in forty years. Many people still have not recovered from COVID 19 and the aftermath of all of its variants. Some people have lost their jobs, government spending has reached an all time high, and Church attendance is just at a fraction of what it once was. Are these all related? What if anything can we do about this sense of hopelessness that many of us feel about the perilous times that we currently face. Are we going to make it okay? Will we have enough money to make it?
Brothers and sisters the problem is not money, the problem is our attitude. We need to have an immediate attitude adjustment because if we do not, we will find ourselves in a spot of no return for this world or the next.
Look what happens when you begin to worry more about possessions than your soul. Can you ever have enough? The accumulation of worldly possessions for the purpose of having more and more things is not only greed, it does one little good in this world (you can not take it with you) and even less good in the future world. Furthermore, if money is your master, that means God is not (Matthew 6:24).
We can clearly see this is the parable of the Rich Fool. In Luke 12:13-21 we find:
The Parable of the Rich Fool
13 Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” 14 But he said to him, “Friend, who set me to be a judge or arbitrator over you?” 15 And he said to them, “Take care! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” 16 Then he told them a parable: “The land of a rich man produced abundantly. 17 And he thought to himself, ‘What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?’ 18 Then he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.’ 20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ 21 So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God.”
Brothers and sisters are not we today doing many things that Rich Fool did back then. Are we trying to accumulate wealth in this world only to figure out we can not take it with us nor can we spend it on the other side? What if anything can be accomplished for our immortal soul if we carelessly throw it away for a limited time of feigned enjoyment that turns into a deeper desire to consume more and more. Are we prepared to meet our maker like this? Are we truly prepared for what is about to happen to us in the other world if we have acted like this in this world?
Brothers and sisters, wealth eternal should be our goal. Temporary riches will not replace our eternal goal of sustained wealth and riches with God. God does not need money- the government does. God knows what is good for you. Can you truly say the same about the government? God is all-powerful. Do you truly want to say that about the government? Are we seeking the right balance in our life today? What happens to a person who becomes centered on the accumulation of wealth solely?
The answer is not a positive one- either in this world or the next. Being rich in this world is not a guarantee of having happiness in the world or the next one. Being rich in this world is also not a guarantee of being rich in the next. Remember the Egyptians who buried their rulers with their wealth for the other world- what happened to their money? Did their money leave with their soul or did it stay here on earth? Thousands of years of grave robbers can clearly attest and tell you that their wealth does not travel with them. What then can we or should we do about this problem right here and right now?
The solution is simple. We must change our direction while we are on earth so we can change our direction of where we are headed after this life. God is merciful. He knows what we truly need even though we may not act as we do.
Be not mistaken, the problem is not money. Money is an inanimate object. The problem is with the accumulation of wealth and the lack of sharing or caring about others. Pretty soon money becomes your family and reason for existence.
Brothers and sisters, do not be the Rich Fool. Do not worry about the things that really do not matter for our eternal life. What we need is to be reminded of this fact- And the things you have prepared, whose will they be? So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich toward God. Let’s apply what we know here and now to the hereafter and change this world so we can truly prepare ourselves for the next one. Repent, turn back to what is truly the important part of our life here on earth- do what is right and let the consequence follow. All the money here on earth is not worth anything in heaven. Think about this now, change your ways, and more importantly put God first in your life every day. Amen
I have a B.S. and M.S. in Historical Geography from Texas A&M Commerce, and 123 semester hours past my Masters in Education.
I am Certified to teach 9 different subjects and have Principal, Supervisory, and Superintendent Certification
I have thirty years experience as a secondary school teacher, coach, and principal. I am currently teaching at Del Valle High School and I'm the Director of World Class Schools- 150 high schools all around the world who are actively doing video conference projects.
I am a Deacon in the Maronite Catholic Church.
I am extremely interested in Eastern Catholic History
